The police have destroyed 87 drug routes off the county lines – with 18 dealers who have been in prison for more than 50 years in total

Police officers waging war on violent London drug gangs bringing illegal substances to smaller cities in Britain have broken more than 80 supply lines as part of a crackdown on crime.

Police chiefs of the police say that 87 drug distribution routes for ‘provincial lines’ have been cut, and 18 dealers checking some of those lines have been in prison for over 50 years in total as part of Operation Orochi of £ 1 million.

Another 1,300 suspects from county lines have also been charged by the police with violent acts, including 24 murders, since the crackdown last year.

And galvanized long by their success, Police chiefs, who will now receive a £ 5 million war chest from the Home Office to help fight the violent drug gangs, have pledged to destroy another 210 supply lines over the next 12 months.

In a statement today, the Force Commissioner, Cressida Dick, said: “Over the past year, we have made significant progress in our fight against violent drug dealers.

Police officers waging war on violent London drug gangs bringing illegal substances to smaller cities in Britain have broken more than 80 supply lines as part of a crackdown on crime. Picture: a map with some provincial lines

Met chiefs of police meet 87 drug distribution routes for provincial lines have been cut and 18 dealers have spent over 50 years in prison as part of their £ 1 million operation. Pictured: A police officer hits the door of an address believed to be involved in provincial line trading

Met police chiefs will now receive a £ 5 million war chest from the Home Office to help fight the violent drug gangs. Pictured: Metropolitan Police Commissioner Cressida Dick

“The close partnerships with national colleagues have been critical to this success, and I am grateful to all of them for the role they have played – even over the last 10 challenging weeks.

County lines: the centralized drug distribution system that minimizes risks to dealers and exploits the vulnerable

County lines is where illicit drugs are transported from one area to another, often beyond the borders of police and local authorities.

The drugs are usually transported by children or vulnerable people who are forced into them by gangs.

This is a centralized mobile phone, often in a large city, such as London, used to take drug orders, and to send out massive text messages in an area outside the city, such as the house. who offer drugs for sale. provinces.

The mobile phone is called the “county line”.

Local dealers who are part of the gang then distribute the drugs in that area.

A common feature of the drug supply in the provincial lines is the exploitation of young and vulnerable people.

Dealers often focus on children and adults – often with mental or addiction problems – to act as drug couriers or move money around so they can stay under the law enforcement radar.

When county lines are established in an area, violence and weapon-related crimes often increase.

Source: The National Crime Agency

“The police have never deviated from efforts to reduce violence.”

The most recent figures come after officers have reviewed the data collected by those involved in County Lines crime by the National County Lines Coordination Center (NCLCC).

The data was analyzed on the basis of the Met’s crime recording systems.

It found that in fiscal 2019-2020, more than 1,300 people linked to County Lines were charged with approximately 2,000 violent crimes in the capital.

Among the crimes were 24 murders, 270 robberies, more than 200 gun violations, including 23 of possession of a firearm on purpose, and nearly 200 drug offenses.

And today the Met Police again scored a prison sentence as part of Operation Orochi.

Wayne Mann, 35, from London, was jailed today for four years and two months after pleading guilty for concerns about the delivery of Class A drugs.

He was caught after Met Police officers raided his London address in January and discovered he was checking the so-called ‘Tommy Line’ – which was used to distribute drugs in Norfolk.

As part of ‘county lines’ transactions, a central mobile phone, usually based in London, is used to send and receive drug orders from users in counties outside the capital – hence the name ‘county lines’.

Locally based dealers, often vulnerable teenagers, or sometimes younger, are then instructed by those controlling central leadership to distribute the drugs.

Police say the “Tommy Line” has created a user base of 300 people in or near Norwich, resulting in an increase in violence.

When police brought up Mann’s address, heroin with a street value of £ 12,000 was seized and the man, who had previously been convicted of violence and weaponry and linked to gangs, was charged with concerns over the delivery of Class A drugs and imprisoned later.

Another 17 other dealers who control lines in 11 different police areas across Britain have been jailed.

A total of 18 dealers in charge in 11 different police areas across Britain have also been imprisoned. Picture: a map of the police areas where gangs of the provincial lines have been hit by Operation Orochi of the Met Police

Police say the “Tommy Line” (photo: a map of the network) had created a user base of 300 people in or near Norwich – causing an increase in violence.

These include the ‘Alfie Line’ based in Medway, Kent, the ‘Freddie Line’ based in Swansea, South Wales, and the ‘Hefner Line’ based in Didcot, Thames Valley.

More than 20 county lines stopped operating in Norfolk alone

The Norfolk Police Department has permanently closed 20 county lines in its largest operation to tackle class A drug trafficking in Norfolk to date.

The police are among those working with the Met police to tackle the plague of drug trafficking in the region.

In total, 25 people have been charged and convicted of drug offenses, eight of which have already been convicted in court. They are:

Matthew Mills, 33 and from London – six years and nine months’ imprisonment.

Zoe Gloyn, 28, and from Kent – Two years and eight months in prison

Ashley Davies, 29 and from Kent – Two years in prison

Calum Ascione, 25 and from London – Two years and two months’ imprisonment

Sean Lutkin, 29 and from London – Two years in prison • Bradley Chambers, 26 and from London – Three years in prison

Wayne Mann, 35 and from London – Four years and two months’ imprisonment

Kieron Hunter, 23 and from Norwich – Five years and six months’ imprisonment.

The 17 dealers were imprisoned for more than 50 years in total.

Cressida Dick said, “Over the past year we have developed a significant body of evidence showing how criminals use telecommunications to conduct their activities.

“We will work with everything necessary to limit the ability of these individuals to conduct this activity and completely destroy County Lines’ business model.”

The police chief also praised the work of the partners of the Met Police and called on local authorities, charities, schools and parents to help them ‘protect the most vulnerable in our communities from exploitation by gangs who use drugs across the UK’.

Operation Orochi was launched late last year after the forced government had received £ 1.1 million in funding from the Home Office to tackle County Lines.

Police said 61 percent of those arrested had a previous conviction for violence and 64 percent had a previous conviction for weapons.

Only one liner was female, and the other 17 were male, police said.

Only one phone used to run a line was registered, albeit under a fake name, and every other phone was an unregistered Pay-as-you-Go burner device.

Met police say that when they have viewed phone data, there is a consistent pattern of large bulk text messages sent by the line holder advertising the sale of drugs.

Police across the province have done their best to tackle the gangs on the provincial lines. West Midlands police made more than 650 arrests and seized cash and drugs worth over £ 3 million during a crackdown on gangs from the county lines last month

Sometimes tens of thousands of messages were sent in a short time.

On Friday, Operation Orochi got a big boost when the Home Office announced an additional £ 5 million to enable the Met to continue operations on County Lines.

With the money, the force has pledged to arrest, charge and convict a further 210 line holders in the UK over the next 12 months.

Commissioner Dick added: “I welcome the additional funding announced by the Ministry of the Interior which will be used for our work in this area.

“This continues the success of Op Orochi and brings hundreds of others to justice.”